Abstract
The present work investigated the possibility of using limestone as a fine aggregate, after treating with sodium hypochlorite (NaOCL), in improving the properties of light weight self-compacting cement mortar (LWSCM). In this paper, three different mortars were fabricated, one of them contained limestone, the second one had NaOCL-treated lime stone, and the third was a normal mortar with fine sand which kept as reference. In addition, a total of nine ferrocement panels containing NaOCL were fabricated, they were tested under effect of four-point loading in order to study their mechanical properties. The effect of sodium hypochlorite on some physical and mechanical properties of mortar in both states fresh and hardened was also investigated. Compressive strength of (LWSCM) was examined at three commonly selected ages: 3, 7 and 28 days. Results showed that, the treated limestone improves the compressive strength compared to cement mortar containing untreated limestone and normal fine sand. Additionally, the treating of lime stone by the sodium hypochlorite enhances the fresh mortar properties such as mini slump flow test and flow time, besides the mechanical properties of hardened mortar including specific gravity, flexural strength, and compressive strength. Finally, the panels of treated-limestone mortars experienced the largest ultimate load and stiffness of all panels.
